LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A popular street in Louisville is undergoing a large beautification project expected to take at least another year, and it's seeing less foot traffic as a result. 

What You Need To Know

  • Market Street in Louisville’s NuLu area is undergoing a street improvement project

  • It will add wider sidewalks, a dedicated bike lane and additional trees

  • The project, which is expected to be complete by fall 2025, will cost around $12 million 

Construction began on East Market Street in June. The $12 million project is making the street more pedestrian- and biker-friendly and will feature wider sidewalks and trees. Crews are working on the north side of the street first before moving to the south side.

Traffic cones, caution tape and limited access to business are commonplace as the work extends toward downtown. 

“It's just been a long time coming," said Zoe Austin, lead at the Please & Thank You coffee shop on Market Street. "The roads are messed up, the sidewalks are cracked, and I think it'll be good." 

Austin added they’ve seen a decline in traffic since construction began. The bulk of the work is happening on the far side of where the shop sits.

“I mean, a lot of our traffic for the store itself does require people being able to walk past (the construction), so I’ve tried to accommodate by putting signs out that say, like, 'We're still open,'” Austin said. “But I have noticed that traffic has been a little bit lower.”

Two blocks down the street sit Muth’s Candies. The family-owned store has been in the area for more than a century and had to relocate once before when I-65 was built in the 1960s.

Vories said he hopes the work won’t affect the store during its two busy seasons: Easter and Christmas. 

“Whether it's in our block or whether the construction is physically in our block during those busy seasons, it’s unknown,” Vories said. “So hopefully, it doesn't hit us when we're the busiest.”

According to the city, crews will rework Market Street between Baxter Ave. and Brook Street. Construction is expected to last through fall 2025.

“Some of the other businesses around here have just been observing foot traffic to kind of measure if they're even going to be open,” Austin said. “We've had our neighbors that have said that they're going to close if they don't notice people coming in and out, but we're going to stay open as long as we can keep our normal hours.”

It's a headache in the short term, but one Austin and Vories said will be worth it once complete. 

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